


On Top of the World

by pennyofthewild



Category: Free!
Genre: 2016 Summer Olympics, Canon-Compliant, Future-fic, Gen, I can't believe there are no Aki fics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-10
Updated: 2013-10-10
Packaged: 2017-12-29 01:24:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/999203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pennyofthewild/pseuds/pennyofthewild
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Swimming for the team is the best sort of swimming. Yazaki Aki, and swimming freestyle in the 4x100 meter medley relay.</p>
            </blockquote>





	On Top of the World

**Author's Note:**

> Written for an anon on tumblr. -I can't believe the character tag for Zaki-chan didn't exist before now! C'mon, fandom!

**_Brazil, 2016 Summer Olympics_ **

Sitting on the bench in a room full of waiting athletes, Yuuki-chan rolls her shoulders. “Alright, girls, this is it.” She holds out her hand; Aya-chan takes it, Chitanda-chan takes Aya’s and Aki grasps Chitanda’s, squeezing Chitanda’s fingers. Yuuki-chan smiles encouragingly at the three of them.

“We’re going to be great,” she says, her eyes bright. “Absolutely great. You guys are the best.”

They stand like that for several moments, hand-in-hand, watching the Australian team file out: and then the announcer’s voice echoes:

“ _And in lane five, Japan, lead by Yuuki Araki_!”

Aki takes a deep breath, and they walk out, single file, with their hands still linked. The crowd in the bleachers is deafening; looking up, Aki can see an enormous Japanese flag stretched over several rows of seats, and several smaller ones, waving merrily from the sidelines.

They raise their linked hands, waving at the audience in appreciation of the enthusiastic cheering: Aki is smiling so hard her cheeks hurt, her heart pounding in her throat.

The walk to the starting block is short, but by the end of it, Aki’s legs feel like jelly. She sits down, knees knocking into each other, unzipping her jersey with trembling fingers, and shucks her trousers down to a heap around her ankles. Goose bumps erupt on her newly bared arms and legs, and she shivers: the air is bracingly cold, and Aki skips a little in place, to get her blood flowing, remembering Coach Hagiwara’s constant reminder:  _warm up,_   _warm up,_   _warm up_ before every race.

She casts an eye over the bleachers: somewhere, Coach Hagiwara is sitting in her seat, glasses set low on her nose, her arms crossed in her usual manner, with: fierce pride, Aki hopes, at the sight of her pupils getting ready for the race of a lifetime.

Aki breathes in, deeply, the smell of chlorine, wafting up from the pool, curling into her nose. It is strangely calming, she thinks, an unchanging constant that is the same at every event, comforting in its uniformity.

The first whistle goes off: the call for the backstroke swimmers to take their positions, and Aki watches Yuuki –chan jump into the pool with a little splash. She climbs up to the ladder, clutching the sides with white-knuckled fingers, goggles drawn firmly across her eyes.

 _Take your positions_ , the announcer’s faintly robotic voice sounds, again, and Yuuki –chan braces herself, rising up, against the ladder: the buzzer goes off again and she leaps backward, disappearing under the water’s surface. Her entry was perfect, Aki thinks admiringly as Yuuki-chan surfaces, and she follows closely behind Chitanda-chan to the starting block, the ground rough under her feet.

Aya-chan is already waiting on the starting block, the line of her back tense, and as Yuuki-chan makes the turn – she is in second place, Aki sees Aya-chan lower her center: and then she dives in, just as Yuuki-chan makes her finish.

Chitanda-chan steps onto the block, adjusting her goggles. Her shoulders rise as she breathes in. Aki tucks the last of her hair into her swim cap. Her fingers are cool – almost cold -  against her forehead.

Aya-chan finishes in third, and Chitanda-chan is off, and Aki smiles as she moves up, because Chitanda-chan’s ‘fly has never been better:

Chitanda-chan makes her turn; Aki lowers her goggles, pulling at the strap to make sure it lies flat, watching Chitanda-chan draw closer and closer: ten meters, and Aki leans over, gripping the edge of the block with her fingers, her toes curling around the rim: five, and she lowers her center of gravity – and then Chitanda-chan touches the block  - 

and Aki dives, long and lean and powerful, and she meets the water with the overwhelming joy of a long-awaited reunion with a loved one, bubbles exploding from her point of entry:

Aki kicks: once, twice, three times, and surfaces, breathing deeply and then she  _reaches out_ :

 _Don’t be afraid_ , she remembers:  _thrust your fingers into the surface_ and  _carve an opening_  – _then slide your body through that opening_   - I wonder if you’re watching, Nanase-kun? On your television set?

Aki makes the turn, realizing with a fresh surge of adrenaline and a rush of pride, that she is in first –  _she is in first_  – and she throws herself forward, slicing through the water with the grace and ease of one at home in their natural environment: a swordfish, perhaps, gaily flying forward like a bird in the air:

Twenty meters to go: Aki breathes in on the upward stroke, arm lifted high. Fifteen, and she can see the block drawing closer, her competition an afterthought in the back of her mind. Ten, and the shouts of her teammates grow louder:

Aki slaps the flat of her hand against the starting block and she is hoisted upwards by her friends, the clamor of their voices  _we did it we’ve done gold_  thunderously loud and she is screaming, too, swept into a crushing group hug, Aya-chan’s arm, still slick with pool water, tight around her neck and Chitanda-chan’s damp hair in her face, Yuuki-chan’s voice ringing, hoarse with excitement, in her ears.

 _We did it_ , Aki thinks, a little dazedly, afterward, standing on the podium with a bouquet of flowers and her medal, heavy around her neck, and she nearly forgets to smile for the picture: but when she does, it is her brightest, happiest smile: her sunflower smile, and Chitanda-chan says, with a little pout,

“Shoot, Zaki-chan, you’ve outshone us in the picture, again,” and Yuuki-chan tells her, teasingly,

“Oh, give the girl a break, Chitanda, she can’t help being beautiful,” and Aki says, her cheeks flushed and eyes sparkling:

“I think you’re  _all_  beautiful,” and they walk out into the sun with their arms thrown around each other’s shoulders, their laughter soaring upwards, into the sky, and Aki thinks:

 _I swim best free, for the team_ : and that, she decides, with a decisive little nod, is the absolute truth.

***

 

 

 

 

end.


End file.
